Making a volcano is a fun scientific project, especially for children. You can easily make a volcano if you need a project idea for a scientific exhibition! Make your own dough using ingredients you can find at home and shape the dough into a volcano. After that, apply paint on the mountain to make it look more real and add ingredients to create an eruption!
Step
Part 1 of 4: Mixing the Dough
Step 1. Mix 600 grams of flour, 200 grams of salt, 250 ml of water and two tablespoons of oil
Measure out each of the ingredients and put them in a large bowl. Use a fork or spoon to mix everything together.
After a few minutes, the dough will be difficult to mix. You can ask your parents, teacher, or sibling to help mix the ingredients
Step 2. Knead the dough with your hands to form it into a ball
When the dough is too firm to mix with a fork or spoon, use your hands. Knead and press the dough like clay to mix all the ingredients. Use your hands to shape the dough into a large ball.
- Make sure you knead the dough on a sturdy surface, such as a table or kitchen counter.
- Use a grinder to flatten and knead the dough.
Step 3. Add 1 tablespoon of water if the dough doesn't stick well
If the dough crumbles when kneaded or shaped, it's possible that the dough is still too dry. Add a tablespoon of water, then use your hands to knead and mix the water with the dough.
- If the dough is still dry, add a teaspoon of water periodically until the dough sticks.
- Be careful not to add too much water. Otherwise, the dough will be very sticky!
Step 4. Add two tablespoons of flour if the dough is too sticky
If the dough still sticks to your hands, it's too sticky. Sprinkle two tablespoons of flour. Use your hands to spread the extra flour into the dough.
- If the dough still feels too sticky, add another tablespoon of flour and mix into the dough. Keep adding flour until the dough feels soft and doesn't stick to your hands.
- Do not add too much flour so that the dough does not crumble.
Part 2 of 4: Creating the Volcano Shape
Step 1. Press the dough ball into the center of the tray or cover the box
When it erupts, your volcano will pollute the room or place around you. Place the dough in a tray or box lid and press the ball to stick it to the bottom of the container. The container used can accommodate the lava that comes out of the mountain.
- If you are using a tray, make sure you have asked your parent or guardian for permission. Do not use a reusable tray because once the volcano is attached to the bottom, the tray will be damaged and may not be usable again.
- You can also use a cardboard box tutuk, but make sure you ask your parent or guardian for permission first!
Step 2. Use your hands to shape the dough to make it look like a volcano
Press the sides of the dough ball with your hands to shape it. Make a ball of dough into a mountain shape using your hands.
- Ask an adult or older sibling for help if the dough balls are too hard to shape!
- There are several types of volcanoes. Some species have steeper slopes, while others are even “flat” at the top. You can shape your dough according to certain types of volcanoes, but keep in mind that most mountains have an uneven surface and will not be completely flat.
Step 3. Push a glass cup or small jar into the center of the dough mountain
Once the dough forms mountains, take a cylindrical glass cup or jar with a volume of 240-350 ml and press it into the center of the mound. Press deep enough so that the lip of the cup or jar is level with the top of the mound. This glass or jar will be the opening or crater of your volcano.
- This part may be difficult to do. Ask an adult or someone else for help with a firm hand if you can't push the cup or jar into the dough.
- Make sure you've asked permission from your parent or guardian before using the cup or jar. The cup will become part of the volcano and cannot be used again after that.
Step 4. Shape the dough around the cup to resemble a volcano
Once the cups or jars have been inserted, reshape the dough so that it looks like a volcano. Use your hands to press or shape the dough around the cup or jar being used.
- Keep in mind that the surface of a volcano is not completely smooth. The outer surface is rocky and rough so it doesn't matter if your dough has a lot of lumps.
- Keep in mind that technically you can still make your volcano look like a certain type of mountain. You can also make an ordinary volcano. Search the internet for pictures of volcanoes to find an example you'd like to emulate.
Part 3 of 4: Painting the Volcano
Step 1. Wait until the dough is completely dry before you color it
The dough should dry for at least 8 hours so you need to let it sit overnight. Place the volcano in a place where pets can't reach it so it doesn't get damaged, such as on the top shelf of a closet or a room where pets don't enter.
- Volcanic dough or clay is hard to the touch after it dries. Check the dough after about 8 hours by pressing it.
- If the dough is still soft after 8 hours, let it dry again for a few hours.
Step 2. Apply a coat of brown or black paint on the outside of the mountain
For coloring volcanoes, acrylic paints can be the best choice. Choose a color that makes your mountain look realistic. Try painting the mountains with a light brown, dark brown, or black paint. Use a large brush to paint the side of the mountain and coat it with color.
- Make sure you put old newsprint or paper towels out before painting to protect your work area from stains.
- You can also wear an unused t-shirt if you want.
Step 3. Paint the inside of the volcano with orange or yellow paint for an added effect
If you want the inside of the volcano to look like it has lava, you can color the cup inside the mountain. Use a medium-sized brush to coat the cup with paint.
- Choose a bright orange color to give a contrast to the brown or black paint that coats the exterior of the volcano.
- You can make orange paint by mixing red and yellow paint in a balanced ratio.
Step 4. Dry the paint overnight before you erupt
The paint on the inside and outside of the mountain must be completely dry before you create an eruption. Let the paint dry overnight to make sure it dries completely. Otherwise, the paint may smudge when you add the lava "erupting" ingredients.
- Keep the volcano in a place where pets cannot reach it, such as the top shelf of a closet or an enclosed room.
- You can touch the paint to see if the paint is dry. The paint will feel sticky when it's still wet, and smooth when it dries.
Part 4 of 4: Creating the Eruption
Step 1. Put 2 tablespoons of baking soda into the volcano
Take 2 tablespoons of baking soda and put it in a cup inside the mountain. Make sure the inside of the mountain is completely dry before you add the ingredients. The moisture in the cup causes the baking soda to foam up prematurely.
- Baking soda is an ingredient commonly available at home so you may be able to get it easily.
- Ask a parent or guardian for permission before using baking soda.
Step 2. Add 1 teaspoon of dish soap to the baking soda
Dish soap will make the eruption appear more foamy. You only need 1 teaspoon of soap to achieve this effect.
- You can use any dish soap. Use the soap available in your kitchen.
- Make sure you ask permission from your parent or guardian first!
Step 3. Add a few drops of red and yellow food coloring to the mountain
Food coloring will make the foam look like lava. To create a bright lava flow, add a few drops of red and yellow food coloring.
You can also use orange food coloring to color the lava
Step 4. Add 30 ml of vinegar to create a volcanic eruption
Vinegar is the last ingredient you need to add and once it's added, your volcano will erupt! Pour in vinegar if you want to create an eruption.
- Don't add vinegar until you're ready to create an eruption! You can leave the other ingredients in the mountain for as long as it takes until you're ready to erupt.
- You can add more vinegar if you still have some baking soda at the bottom of the jar or cup.
Tips
If you don't want to make dough and build your own volcano, you can put the ingredients for the eruption in a 2 liter soda bottle. These materials will produce a volcanic eruption that comes out of the mouth of the bottle
Warning
- Don't look directly at the "crater" when the volcano erupts!
- Stay away after you add the vinegar!
- Ask your parent or guardian's permission before carrying out this experiment. You may also need adult help with some steps of the experiment.
